


look

by boyeater



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: M/M, donghyuck is hot and he is jeno's type, they play soccer, what can i say. this is a projection fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-25
Updated: 2020-02-25
Packaged: 2021-02-27 18:54:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,000
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22890565
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/boyeater/pseuds/boyeater
Summary: In simple words, Jeno thinks he’s going to lose his fucking mind if Donghyuck doesn’t stop looking like the boy of his dreams.
Relationships: Lee Donghyuck | Haechan/Lee Jeno
Comments: 51
Kudos: 369





	look

**Author's Note:**

  * For [jjaeniel](https://archiveofourown.org/users/jjaeniel/gifts).



> hi jam i am sorry this is some days late i am simply shithead [waves] this is my haech sexy fic. haech GOALIE..haech soccer player i think i am so smart for that
> 
> as is custom, not proofread for errors so if there are any, [i immediately look the other way]

All things considered, it’s a good thing that Donghyuck and Jeno play for the same soccer team. 

It’s also a good thing that they work well together, and it’s _really_ good that they’re both good at what they do. Donghyuck’s addition to the team has done far more good than it has done bad, Jeno will admit that in a heartbeat, no questions asked, if not for one thing. It’s a very, very, very little thing that most likely isn’t of any importance to anyone who isn’t Jeno, but as for Jeno himself, this boy-sized, mind-numbing thing is a make-it or break-it, “I am drawing the line here because if I cross it now, there is no going back” all-time-low. 

In simple words, Jeno thinks he’s going to lose his fucking mind if Donghyuck doesn’t stop looking like the boy of his dreams. 

Jeno has a game plan though.

It's like a list. A way to sort out thoughts, a step-by-step guide, a quick Google search and Wikihow to fix any problem in the world. That’s what always helps in a crisis like this. A short, simple, easy to follow list.

It goes like this:

> 1\. Look away. 
> 
> 2\. 

Easy.

Now Jeno just has to make sure Donghyuck looks about a hundred times less hot at practice. Scratch that. Make it runs and workouts _and_ practice. 

(And please, for the sake of us all, _do not_ ask Jeno about how hot Donghyuck looks during official matches.)

(Donghyuck looks _very_ good in the uniform.)

If anyone cared the _slightest_ about Jeno’s peace of mind, they would knock Donghyuck down a couple of notches on the “You’re so fucking hot, please take off your shirt right now or I will cry” scale. (It’s a very sensitive scale, prone to acting up at any point in time.)

Maybe Jeno should make it an official rule that Donghyuck has to be properly clothed at all times. 

Yeah.

That should work.

No more shorts that ride up too much. (And _please_ no more shorts that hang loose around Donghyuck’s thighs. No more crouching on the grass in front of the goal. Please. Jeno is praying to any god that will listen. Please no more crouching in front of the goal. No more. No more of any of that.) 

No more shirts that stick to his skin. 

Donghyuck’s stomach is still impossibly soft no matter how hard the training and conditioning is, and Jeno thanks the Heavens for this small mercy, he really does—Jeno doesn’t know what the fuck he would do if he walked into the weight room one day and was faced with the knowledge that Donghyuck has abs. Maybe he would just die—but perhaps he was naive to think that he could catch a break. Of course, Jeno thinks. _Of course_ , the world would find a way to cater to Jeno’s likes to a T. Donghyuck doesn’t have abs like Jeno’s or Jaemin’s, but _fuck._ Fuck. Donghyuck’s waistline is so pretty and the small of his back is so delicate looking and Jeno could really cry. He could cry right this moment. Jaemin says that God is playing favorites and placing the boy of his dreams on a silver platter in front of him, but really, Jeno thinks this is more of a test of character than anything. A test of endurance. How much can a boy take before he cracks? 

(As it turns out, it only takes one Donghyuck, and Jeno is done for.) 

And maybe most importantly: 

No more fresh out of the shower Donghyuck in the locker room. No more rosy cheeks and glistening skin and wet hair. 

Sometimes Jeno still thinks back on the first time he saw Donghyuck come out of the showers. It was also the first day that Donghyuck joined them for practice, and Jeno still didn’t know his name or anything about him, really, only that he was his type. Donghyuck was shirtless, water still dripping from his dark brown hair down his body, towel tied low around his hips and silver dog tag glinting in the low light of the locker room. Jeno hasn’t forgotten the look of complete nonchalance on Donghyuck’s face as he smiled lazily at him, “Like what you see?” 

(Jeno proceeded to take the coldest shower of his fucking life.)

No skin is allowed to be shown at any point in time. (This is non-negotiable.)

Okay. 

Solid plan.

Jeno will still have to look at Donghyuck’s face on a daily basis, and he’s already fighting an ongoing, losing battle with that one, sure, but after two months of having to face Donghyuck, Jeno got some life hacks of his own. And Jeno has long mastered the art of looking away when Donghyuck’s vicious “I’m cute and I know it”, dreamy-eyes-and-cutesy-smile, two-hit-combo machine suddenly kicks in.

It’s starting to become harder and harder for Jeno to look away though and it’s becoming more and more often that Jeno is hit with a wave of attraction and he has the air knocked out of his lungs. He’s got to make Donghyuck look less… like Donghyuck. Turn down the attraction. Lower the charm by about 50%. 100% is the goal, but 50% is the most realistic number. Jeno has to make it easier on himself. Work smarter, not harder. That’s the saying, isn’t it? 

_Think, Jeno. Think._

Hoodies and sweatpants. 

That’s it. That’s the solution. 

Donghyuck should only be allowed to show up to practice in hoodies and sweatpants. 

Not that this would work though, Jeno thinks, Donghyuck looks just as good completely covered up as he does with some skin showing. Jeno has seen Donghyuck in four day old joggers and ratty hoodies five sizes too big, messy hair covered by a beanie that’s barely on his head, and he still inexplicably, always looks like the boy of Jeno’s dreams.

It’s the boyishness. 

It has to be the boyishness. 

Donghyuck has so much boyish charm, something in how he holds himself that makes him come off so confident and bold, so much louder, so much more playful and mischievous than he really is. 

All of his movements look effortless. Rolling his shoulders back and tilting his head from side to side at the start of each match. Sizing up the competition with a small crooked smile. Slapping each teammate on the back for a good call. Falling to his knees and catching his breath after a win. Silhouette of a boy crouched down in front of the goal, looking both small and impossibly larger than life in the bright lights. Barely holding himself up with his bare hands pressed to the wet grass as he stares at the scoreboard with a carefully blank face after a close game. 

Smooth. Electric. Captivating. 

It drives Jeno a little mad. 

The most practical course of action would be to kick Donghyuck off of the soccer team completely. 

Jeno would probably go through the five stages of grief and a complete round of Lee Donghyuck withdrawals—who would Jeno be as a person if he suddenly cut off his daily dose of grass-stained Donghyuck?—but that way Jeno wouldn’t have to look at him at all. 

No more Donghyuck within a five mile radius is a simple solution to Jeno’s Donghyuck-sized problem.

Jeno wouldn’t do that, though. Not in a million years. And no one on the team would actually allow that to happen, they like Donghyuck too much, and Coach especially would have Jeno’s head on a silver platter if he found out Jeno even _thought_ about it. Coach personally scouted Donghyuck and just _barely_ convinced him to join the team after almost a month, so kicking Donghyuck off of the team after two months of daily morning runs and afternoon team practices simply because his stupid dog brain short circuits around him is _not_ going to work out in Jeno’s favor.

Donghyuck is simply too good of a goalie to pass up. 

Fuck. 

Donghyuck _is_ really good at what he does, isn’t he? And he works hard, not once complaining or asking for a day off. That makes him so much hotter than he already is. 

What the fuck is Jeno supposed to do now?

“Jeno!” Donghyuck calls out, bag of soccer balls tossed across his shoulder and flashing Jeno a teasing smile as he slides up to his side and slaps the captain’s band around Jeno’s arm. Jeno still doesn’t know why Donghyuck does that, but Jeno thinks it’s probably just a habit more than anything. “You know you’re thinking out loud, right?”

Thinking out loud?

What was he thinking about? 

Jeno blinks blankly at Donghyuck, trying to backtrack the last thirty seconds.

Donghyuck drops the mesh bag onto the grass and the soccer balls roll off in a dozen different directions. Donghyuck doesn’t bother to chase after them—Donghyuck sometimes falls into moods where he doesn’t really care for anything other than what’s necessary—and only picks out his lucky ball, the bright orange one. Jeno watches in silent interest as Donghyuck plays around with the ball for a moment before lightly kicking it up in the air and bouncing it easily from one thigh to the other.

Fuck, he’s so hot.

Oh. 

That’s what he was thinking about. 

Jeno’s blood immediately runs cold once that fact sinks in and he realizes the implications of Donghyuck’s words, and once Jeno’s brain starts working again, all the blood in his body shifts course and rushes to his head. 

Fuck.

“I…” Jeno breathes out something like a squeak, embarrassment coloring his face bright red, and he swallows around the knot in his throat, “I said that out loud?” 

Donghyuck nods, not looking away from the ball.

“I’m so sorry, oh my god,” Jeno apologizes profusely, waving his hands around to make Donghyuck look him in the eye and acknowledge that he’s completely sincere. “I don’t want to make you uncomfortable or anything, really—of course I do think you’re hot,” Jeno admits in the heat of the moment, trying to explain himself but probably only adding fuel to the fire, “but that doesn’t mean I should have said it out loud, but I did, oh my god, I did, and now you probably think I’m—”

The orange ball falls away and rolls towards Jeno’s shoes.

Donghyuck looks up.

“You think I’m hot?” 

Jeno’s brain, once again, short circuits. 

“What?” 

Donghyuck tilts his head to the side, and—oh, fuck the world for this—the sun shines down on him so prettily. Sunshine painted smile and eyes alight with a clarity like bright blue skies, “You said that you think I’m hot.” 

Jeno backtracks slowly, trying to work out whatever is happening in front of his eyes, and he kicks at Donghyuck’s favorite ball, sending it flying into the goal if only to have something to do with himself other than blush under Donghyuck’s eyes, “You said that I was thinking out loud.”

“I was talking about the ‘what the fuck is Jeno supposed to do now’ thing.” _Oh_ , Jeno thinks. That makes sense. “Not about you thinking that I’m hot, though it _is_ good to know that you think that.” Donghyuck points out easily, as if each word isn’t like a nail in Jeno’s coffin. “Also, sorry, off topic, but do you think in third person?”

“I do think in third person.” Jeno says, if only for confirmation. “Sometimes. Not all the time, but sometimes.”

Donghyuck smiles knowingly, “ _And_ you think I’m hot?”

“Sometimes.” Jeno looks Donghyuck up and down. “All the time? Yeah.” 

“That’s good.” Donghyuck says, smile wide and bright, “I think you’re hot too, if that makes this less embarrassing for you.” 

“Oh.” Jeno blinks. “That’s good to know. It does, thank you.” 

They don’t say much after that.

Maybe the problem wasn’t a matter of making Donghyuck less attractive but a matter of asking him out. 

“Ice cream after practice?” 

“I’m lactose intolerant.” 

“Fuck.” Jeno says, “Me too.”

**Author's Note:**

> maybe a more fitting title for this is Fuck. [i shake a can: spare kudos and comments please. God bless you]
> 
> [twitter](https://twitter.com/haefucker) | [curious cat](https://curiouscat.me/boyeater)


End file.
